Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, is the current head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City. He was elected pope on May 8, 2025, succeeding Pope Francis

. Prevost is the first pope born in the United States and the first from North America. He also holds Peruvian citizenship, having spent many years doing missionary work in Peru and serving as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023. He is the first pope from the Order of Saint Augustine and the second pope from the Americas after Pope Francis

. His early life included studies in mathematics and philosophy at Villanova University, entry into the Augustinian Order in 1977, ordination as a priest in 1982, and advanced theological and canonical studies in Rome. He served extensively in Peru as a missionary, seminary teacher, and diocesan official. He was prior general of the Augustinian Order from 2001 to 2013. In 2023, Pope Francis appointed him prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, and made him a cardinal

. As pope, Leo XIV emphasizes synodality, missionary dialogue, and engagement with contemporary social and technological issues such as climate change, migration, and human rights. He is seen as a moderate and a skilled administrator expected to continue Pope Francis's reform agenda. His papal name honors Pope Leo XIII, known for developing modern Catholic social teaching

. In summary, Pope Leo XIV is Robert Francis Prevost, an American-born Augustinian priest and missionary with deep ties to Latin America, elected in 2025 as the 267th pope, notable for being the first American pope and the first from the Augustinian Order